It's Okay
by Shadow-Hunter84
Summary: Nico finally tells Percy about his feelings towards the older demigod. / No pairings, just a conversation between Percy and Nico.


***contains minor spoilers for The Heroes of Olympus***

**Okay, so there is no pairing in this story, just a little something I wrote where Nico admits his feelings for Percy. There's no real plot, and I imagine it would happen between House of Hades and Blood of Olympus.**

**I'd like to apologize in advance for any spelling/grammar mistakes. English is not my mother language.**

**Percy's POV**

* * *

"Um... Percy?" a low voice behind me calls, in a hesitant tone, and I turn around to acknowledge that it belongs to Nico di Angelo.

"Yes?"

"I... I need to talk to you" it could be me, but he looks a little... scared.

"Sure" I reply, now nervous as well. People should _never _start a conversation by stating that they need to talk to you. It's kind of alarming.

Nico takes a small step closer while quickly looking around, as if to check that no one is paying any real attention to us.

"I – I don't know if you got to hear any of it" he starts, "but for a while, some people were saying that – that I had a crush on Annabeth" I didn't know, and had I heard this two years ago I might have felt a small pang of jealousy, but Annabeth and I have gone through so much together that things like this don't matter anymore. And I suppose it makes sense that he liked her. "I wanted you to know that it wasn't – it isn't true" he adds.

In spite of his conclusive tone, I can instantly tell that there's more to it than that.

"Go on" is really all I can think of saying, as Nico seems reluctant to continue.

"I – you see – it's just that I actually – I actually did–" he's looking at the ground now, hands in fists at his sides. There's a short pause while he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before opening them again. "Percy" Nico begins again, more clearly now. He looks very serious about whatever this is, so I decide to stay quiet and let him speak. "I've never had a crush on Annabeth" I nod. "The truth is that I actually–" looking down again. "I actually had a crush on… on you" that last bit is a whisper so low I struggle to hear it, but the second the words register I'm taken aback. It was so uncalled for that for a few seconds I can do nothing but blink.

Nico seems to notice that too.

"I'm – I'm completely over it now, really. It was probably just a phase, I was a kid and I – I don't know" he mumbles, and I want him to stop with the excuses, but I'm unsure of what to do, so I just put my hands on his shoulders.

"It's okay" I say, and it really is, but I can feel his back stiffen beneath my fingers regardless.

When Nico raises his head again, I can see a single tear rolling down his cheek, despite his obvious effort not to cry. It's pretty clear that keeping this a secret had been hurting him, and I don't know exactly why, but I soon find him leaning against me. It's not even a proper hug, just his head resting on my shoulder, and Nico isn't even exactly crying, his breathing still even, but I can feel his tears on my sleeve anyway.

This gesture surprises me even more. However, I know better than to push him away, so I just pat his back somewhat awkwardly, but it seems to be enough, as his posture relaxes visibly.

"It's okay" I repeat lamely, and once again he doesn't seem convinced, just as his hesitance doesn't fully convince me that he's over it, despite what he just said, but that's also okay, and I hope Nico forgives me for not being remotely able to return his feelings, because I know that hurts him as well.

When he pulls away, I can see in his expression that he's accepted it, and he whispers, finally looking up at me, "I'm sorry".

I'm not sure what he's apologizing for, but I smile sheepishly before replying once again with an unsatisfying "It's okay." Truth is, I'm at a loss for words. I truly would never have imagined that Nico di Angelo, ever the so reclusive kid, would develop feelings for me of all people, and I don't exactly know how I feel about that. But I suppose that's okay too.

Our conversation seems pretty much over now, and the silence between us, although not awkward, feels sort of heavy, so Nico quickly excuses himself. When he walks away, he seems more confident, like a weight has been lifted off of his back, and that's probably the case, but I can't help feeling a bit guilty.

At the very best, Nico would be like a little brother to me, when that's likely the last thing he wants. But I love someone else, and I really love loving that person. I wish there was something I could do, anything at all, but there's nothing either me or him can do about this, as much as both of us wish otherwise.

But Nico, like me, is still very young, and I trust there's not much that the boy who crossed Tartarus all by himself isn't capable of handling. And I know it's not easy – damn it, facing your feelings is perhaps one of the hardest things to do –, but it's not unknown to me that there isn't a limit to the pain you feel throughout your life, and there is no medicine or cure for some types of pain. You just have to feel them and wait for them to subside and fade. Some people can get through it, just as some can't. But if there's anything I learned about Nico di Angelo in the past four years, is that he's definitely among the ones who can. So I guess it's okay.

* * *

**This is it. I hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. Also, this is my first fanfiction ever, and if there's anything you would like to say about it, I encourage you to say it, so please feel free to review :)**


End file.
